Elastic band expanding tool



Jan. 25, 1955 R, M, MlNOCK 2,700,387

ELASTIC BAND EXPANDING TOOL Filed Feb. 25, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Robert M. Minock All y www@ ATTO R N EYS Jan. 25, 1 955 R. M. MlNocK 2,700,387

ELASTIC BAND ExPANDING TOOL Filed Feb. 25, 1952 2 sheets-sneer 2 FlG.- 5

INVENTOR. Robert M. Minock M/VM MAW ATTORNEYS United States Patenti() ELASTIC BAND EXPANDING TOOL Robert M. Minock, Denver, Colo.

Application February 23, 1952, Serial No. 273,050

10 Claims. (Cl. 12S-303) This invention relates to tools and more particularly to tools for expanding an elastic member such as a band or the like so it can be easily placed over a member or object when in its expanded condition and then subsequently released and allowed to contract onto the member or object.

One of the objects of my invention is to produce an improved hand operated tool for expanding elastic bands or like members in which the expanding is accomplished by a plurality of outwardly movable elements or arms.

A further object is to produce in an expanding tool of the type referred to means for moving vthe expanding elements outwardly in an easy and simple manner.

`Still another object is to produce in a tool of the kind referred to improved means for mounting and operating the expanding elements or arms so that a short movement of two handles toward each other by a hand gripping action can accomplish the expansion of an elastic band to a large diameter and with a minimum of manual effort.

Yet another object is to produce a hand operated elastic band expanding tool and means for releasing the band for contraction after expansion has taken place, said releasing means and the expanding elements including their operating means being s associated that a single hand can accomplish all operations in an easy and eicient manner and release of the band for contraction will be certain and positive.

A more specific object is to produce an improved tool for use .in expanding rubber bands and mounting same on parts of an animal to accomplish docking or castration.

A still further object is to produce improved locking means for a hand expanding tool which will permit the tool to remain in its band expanding position without any hand gripping action.

The particular tool here shown by way of example as embodying my invention isto be considered as animprovement. on that tool shown in my co-pending application Serial No. 195,261 iiled November 13, 1950, for Expander Tool for Elastic Bands, now Patent No. 2,601,547.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a perspective .view of my improved tool with parts broken away to disclose details thereof;

Figure 2 isa top view of the rtool showing a band expanded, and in dotted lines showing the elements in their inner positions with the band thereon prior to expanslon;

Figure 3 is a bottom view ofthe tool with parts broken away to show details of construction, said view showing the band partially expanded by the tool;

Figure 4 is a cross sectional view through the tool; Figure 5 is. a perspective view of a part of one of the rotatable members showing the lugs for controlling .the swinging of an expanding element;

Figure 6 is a sectional view on the line 6-6 of Figure 2 showing the pivotal mounting of the releasing ring;

Figure 7 is a perspective View of a rubber band to be expanded by the tool; and

Figure 8 is a sectional view on the line 8;-8 of Figure 2 showing details of the locking means embodied in the tool.

Referring in detail to the drawings disclosing a preferred construction embodying `my invention, it will be seen that there are two rotatable members A and B, with the member A being superposed on the member B. rlhe lower member B has a flat annular part 10 from which ICC extends outwardly an integral handle 11. The upper member A is also formed with a flat annular part 12 from which an integral handle 13 extends outwardly. The annular parts 10 and 12 of the two members are in spaced relation and positioned therebetween are ve expanding elements or arms X. Each of these arms has an elongated square body portion 14 and an upwardly `extending linger 15 on its inner end. Each arm is arranged to be pivoted near its center to the annular part 10 of the lower member B by means of a pin 16. These pins also serve to rigidly connect a guide ring 17 to the lower member B. The guide ring, it will be noted, overlies the expanding arms 14 and acts as a holding' element for maintaining the annular part 12 of the upper member in position and this ring further serves as a bearing upon which the part 12 can rotate relative to the lower member. It will be noted, as best seen in Figures l andl 4, that the annular part 12 of the upper member A is provided with an inwardly extending flange which underlies the outer part of the ring 17 and thus when the ring is held in position by the pivot pins with the ends of these pins riveted over, the upper `member will be prevented from separation from the lower member and the annular part 12 can rotate on the edge of the ring as a bearing.

The expandingk elements or arms X are arranged to be swung inwardly and outwardly about their -pivots 16 by the relative rotation between the two members A and B. This is accomplished by providing on the under side of the annular part 12 of the upper member a plurality of sets of lugs. One set of these lugs is shown in Figure 5. Each set comprises two lugs 18 and 19, the lug 18 being somewhat elongated and lug 19 being round. The elongated lug 18 has its longitudinal axis at an angle to the radius of the tool, the angle being such as to permit the free swinging of an expanding arm to itsloutermost position by a line contact with the arm during its entire swinging movement. By having the lug.18-elongated, additional strength is placed into the lug without any interference with the actuation of the arm. Each arm, it will be noted, has its outerend freely extending between the lugs in sliding relation to both. Thus, when there is relative rotation between the two annular parts 10 and 12 of the upper and lower members A and B, the lugs will act on the outer end of an arm and swing it about its pivot. At the same time there will be no binding action, notwithstanding the annular member y12 moves in an annular path and the outer end of the arm swings about its pivot in a different path.

The expandingarms X are so mounted that when the handles llfand 13 of the two members are swung outwardly away from each other, the finger ends of the tive arms will be swung inwardly to the positions where they are hunched together. When in these positions. an elastic band or like member, such as that at E in Figure 7, can be easily pushed over the fingers in a manner shown in Figure 2 by the dashed lines. If now the handles of the twomembers are brought toward each other, each arm, due to its pivotal ymounting and they action thereon by the lugs, will have its iinger end swung outwardly. Each arm swings a uniform amount and to its extreme outer position where the finger will engage with the inner edge lof the guide ring 17. Consequently, these outward movements of the iinger ends-of thev arms will result in the elastic band E being expanded. Due to the particular pivotal mounting and operation` of the arms, the relative rotation rvbetween the two members need not .be great to bring about the complete expanding of the band. 1n the particular tool shown there is less than twenty degrees of relative rotation -of the two members necessary to bring about the expansion.

After the band is expanded, it is of course desirable to quickly release it so' it can vcontractl on any member upon which it is to be mounted. I 'accomplish this with a special releasing member R which is pivotally'mounted on the top member A of the tool. This releasing .member has a ring `part 20 which'is somewhat dishedand an integral actuatingarm 21 extending -from one side thereof. The ring member `is arranged, vwhen in its normal inoperative positon,..to rest on the ,guide ring 17. @The innerameterof the releasing ring -is somewhat smaller than the opening of the guide ring and the ring is provided with live recesses 22 cut into the ring from the inner periphery. These recesses are so spaced that when the fingers on the ends of the arms move to their extreme outward position as permitted by the guide ring 17, they will become positioned in a recess. If an elastic band is being expanded by Athe fingers, the lingers will carry the band outwardly to the expanded position and cause the band to be placed over the inner marginal part of the ring between the recesses, all as shown in Figures 2 and 4. With this arrangement between the expanded band and the releasing ring it will be seen that if the ring is moved upwardly it will push the band off the fingers and cause it to be released so it can freely contract. To swing the ring upwardly toward the releasing ring, the ring has a pivotal mounting on the annular part of the upper member A. The pivoting is done by the arm 21 which, as best shown in Figure 6, has two downwardly extending ears 23 and 24 for receiving a lug 25 upstanding on the annular part 12 of the upper member A. A pivot pin 26 extends through the ears and lugs to provide for the pivotal mounting.

The point of pivoting of the releasing member to the upper member A is important in easy operation of the tool. As shown in Figures l and 2, the arm 21 of the releasing ring is some distance away from the handle 13 of the member A in a clockwise direction. This places the arm in a position where it can be easily operated by the thumb of the hand after expansion of the elastic band is accomplished by the hand. By looking at Figure 2, which is a top View of the tool, it will be seen that if the handles 11 and 13 are grasped by a users right hand, with the handle 13 resting in the palm of the hand beneath the thumb and with the handle 11 lying over the fingers, expansion of the band can be easily accomplished, together with its releasing. All that needs to be done is to grasp the two handles and move them toward each other by a hand gripping action. This expandsthe band. The thumb of the hand will now be in a position overlying the arm 21 and to perform releasing of the band, all that is necessary is to push the thumb downwardly onto the outer end of the arm 21, with the result that the releasing ring will be lifted and the band pushed off the outer ends of the expanding fingers of the arms.

It will be noted that the tool is very simple and comprises a minimum number of moving parts. The construction requires no close tolerances between the parts. The expanding arms are operated in a simple manner and they are always free to slide between the actuating lugs at the outer end of an arm. The lugs have such relation to the arm that no binding can take place during swinging and sliding of an arm. Dirt and foreign materials may get into the tool, but such will not interfere with its easy operation to perform expanding of the band.

The tool has such open structure that it will keep itself clean. The leverage arrangement embodied in the tool is such that expanding of the band is accomplished by an easy gripping action on the handles. It will be further noted that each expanding member has a straight body and that when the fingers are bunched at the axis of the tool, each expanding member lies on a line which passes to one side of the tool axis. Thus, the fingers are never aligned and are always free of each other and can move away from the hunched position without any interference.

Under certain conditions it may be desirable to lock the tool in its band expanding position. Thus, it will be possible for one person to mount a band, expand it and maintain it expanded without gripping action on the handles. This person can then pass the loaded tool to another person who can place the band on an animal and release it. Thus, with several tools, the placing of bands on animals can be speeded up considerably. One can load and another can apply.

As disclosed in Figure 8, it is seen that the annular part 12 of the top member A has a boss 27 on its top situated a short distance to the right from where the handle 13 is attached. This boss has slidable therein a locking pin 28 provided with a knurled head 29. The locking pin is of such length as to extend down into a hole 30 in the annular part of the lower member B when the head rests on top of the boss 27. A spring 31 surrounding the locking pin is positioned between the annular part 12 and an abutment pin 32 extending through the locking pin. This spring thus biases the pin downwardly so that it can enter the hole 30. The hole is so positioned in part 10 that it will become placed below the end of the locking pin when the handles are moved toward each other to fully expand the elastic band E. Under such conditions the locking pin will be automatically pushed into the hole 30 by the action of the spring 31. When the pin is in the hole, the members A and B will be locked from reverse rotation by the action of the eX- panded band and thus the band will be maintained expanded without any gripping action on the handles. As soon as the band is released, the pressure is taken oi the pin and the members A and B can be easily unlocked by lifting the locking pin upwardly by gripping its head The automatic locking action of the tool can be eliminated when desired. This is done by providing the bottom side of the head 29 of the locking pin with a lug 33 and the boss with a slot 34 of a size to easily receive the lug. When automatic locking is desired, the lug is aligned so as to be received in the slot. Thus, the locking pin can slide downwardly to go into the hole 30 under the action of the spring 31. When locking is not desired, the locking pin can be pulled upwardly to its fullest extent and then turned by its head to a position where the lug rests on the top surface of the lug 27 and is thereby held in such an upward position that the lower end of the locking pin is above the top surface of annular part 10.

The tool has been primarily designed for expanding bands and releasing them on members of animals for the purpose of docking or castration. The tool permits the band to be quickly expanded and released. The band can be maintained expanded by the locking means whenever desired and without the necessity of any gripping action. The tool is thin and has a relatively small diameter so it can be quickly placed where desired to release the band. It will be noted that the band, when expanded, has a pentagon shape, thus giving an opening approaching a circle so it can be placed over any object in a quick and easy manner. Although the tool has been designed for a special use, it can be employed to expand any annular member desired.

What is claimed is:

l. A tool operable by a single hand of a user for expanding an elastic annular member and releasing it for contraction comprising a plurality of elements having parts for engaging the inner side of the elastic member, means for moving the elements outwardly to perform expanding including two handles operable by a gripping action of a hand, a releasing member having a part provided with a recess, means for mounting the releasing member on the tool for upward movement, said member having a normal inoperative position underlying the elastic member when expanded and also such a position that the recess thereof can receive the part of an expanding element engaging the inner side of the elastic member when said member is expanded, and means for actuating the releasing member upwardly by a part of the same hand that performs the gripping.

2. A tool operable by a single hand of a user for expanding an elastic annular member and releasing it for contraction comprising a plurality of elements having parts for engaging the inner side of the elastic member, means for moving the elements outwardly to perform expanding including two handles operable by a gripping action of a hand, a releasing ring having recesses in its inner edge, means for pivotally mounting the releasing member on the tool for upward movement and in a normally inoperative position so that each recess thereof will receive the part of an expanding element engaging the inner side of the elastic member when said member is expanded, and arm means on the ring engageable by the thumb of the same hand that performs the gripping for swinging the ring upwardly.

3. A tool operable by a single hand of a user for expanding an elastic annular member and releasing it for contraction comprising a plurality of elements having parts for engaging the inner side of the elastic member, means for moving the elements outwardly to perform expanding including two relatively rotatable rings having two handles operable by a gripping action of a hand, a releasing ring having recesses in its inner edge, means for mounting the releasing member on the upper rotatable ring of lthe tool for upward movement, said releasing ring having a normally inoperative position permitting the recesses thereto to receive the parts of the expanding element engaging the inner side of thc elastic member when said member is expanded and thcreby assure that the elastic member when expanded will overlie the releasing ring, and means for actuating the releasing member upwardly by a part of the same hand that performs the gripping.

4. An expanding tool for an annular elastic member comprising a lower annular member having an outwardly extending handle, an upper annular member having an outwardly extending handle, elongated expanding elements positioned between the annular members and each provided with an upwardly extending part to engage the inner surface of the elastic member, means for pivoting the central portion of each expanding member to the lower annular member at a point near its inner periphery, and means comprising pairs of spaced lugs carried by the upper annular member with each pair slidably receiving therebetween the outer end of an expanding member for swinging same about its pivot.

5. An expanding tool for an annular elastic member comprising a lower annular member having an outwardly extending handle, an upper annular member having an outwardly extending handle, elongated expanding elements positioned between the annular members and each provided with an upwardly extending part to engage the inner surface of the elastic member, means for pivoting the central portion of each expanding member to the lower annular member at a point near its inner periphery, and means comprising pairs of spaced lugs carried by the upper annular member with each pair slidably receiving therebetween the outer end of an expanding member for swinging same about its pivot, and a releasing means for the elastic member comprising a member carried by the upper annular member and so mounted that it can be moved upwardly by the thumb when the handles are gripped and thereby cause the expanded elastic member to be lifted upwardly o the upwardly extending parts of the expanding elements.

6. An expanding tool for an annular elastic member comprising a lower annular member having an outwardly extending handle, an upper annular member having an outwardly extending handle, elongated expanding elements positioned between the annular members and each provided with an upwardly extending part to engage the inner surface of the elastic member, means for pivoting the central portion of each expanding member to the lower annular member at a point near its inner periphery, means comprising pairs of spaced lugs carried by the upper annular member with each pair slidably receiving therebetween the outer end of an expanding member for swinging same about its pivot, and a releasing ring for the elastic member comprising a ring pivoted to the top of the upper annular member at a point spaced anti-clockwise from the handle of said member, said ring having an arm portion extending beyond the pivot so that it can be pressed downwardly by the thumb when the handles are gripped and thereby cause the ring to be lifted upwardly.

7. An expanding tool for an annular elastic member comprising a lower annular member having an outwardly extending handle, an upper annular member in axially spaced relation to the lower member and having an outwardly extending handle, said annular members being mounted for relative rotation about a common axis at the centers thereof, expanding elements positioned between the annular members and each having a straight elongated body provided at its inner end with an upwardly extending nger to engage the inner surface of the elastic member, means for pivoting the central portion of each expanding member to the lower annular member at a point near its inner periphery, lug means carried by the upper annular member and extending axially toward the other member for acting on the outer end of each expanding element and swinging same about its pivot, said length of each element and its point of pivoting being such that when the annular members are rotated relatively in one direction the fingers will be bunched together and each straight body will be on a line extending to one side of the axis of the annular members thus permitting free movement of each linger outwardly from the others when the annular members are rotated relatively in the opposite direction, and means operable only when the expanding elements are moved to expanded positions for holding said elements in such positions without manual force on the handles.

8. A hand operated expanding tool for expanding an elastic annular member and maitaining it expanded without any hand action comprising a plurality of movable elements for engaging the inner surface of the elastic member, means including relatively movable members having handles grippable by the hand of the user for moving the movable elements outwardly to perform the expanding of the elastic member, and means for automatically locking the relatively movable members together after expansion is accomplished and thereby preventing the elastic member from contracting and thereby eliminate the necessity of maintaining any hand gripping action on the handles of the tool, said locking means comprising a slidable locking piu carried by a relatively movable member, a hole in theI other relatively movable member to receive the pin when the elastic member is expanded, and spring means for biasing the locking pin so as to enter the hole when properly positioned.

9. A hand operated expanding tool for expanding an elastic annular member and maintaining it expanded without any hand action comprising a plurality of movable elements for engaging the inner surface of the elastic member, means including relatively movable members having handles grippable by the hand of the user for moving the movable elements outwardly to perform the expanding of the elastic member, means for locking the relatively movable members together after the expansion is accomplished and thereby preventing the elastic member from contracting and thereby eliminate the necessity of maintaining any hand gripping action on the handles of the tool, said locking means comprising a spring biased slidable pin carried by one movable member and engageable by spring action with the other movable member, and means for disabling the spring action on the pin to cause it to engage the said other member.

10. A hand operated expanding tool for expanding an elastic annular member and maintaining it expanded without any hand action comprising a plurality of movable elements for engaging the inner surface of the elastic member, means including relatively movable members connected together for rotation about a common axis and being axially spaced from each other and provided with means positively holding the members against any relative axial movement, means for moving the movable elements in various outward directions by a relative rotation of the relatively movable members, said members having handles grippable by the hand of the user for rotating the members and moving the movable elements outwardly to perform the expanding of the elastic member as the members are rotated, the axis of rotation of the members being within the band when being operated upon, and means for locking the relatively movable members together against reverse rotation after the expansion is accomplished and thereby preventing the elastic member from contracting all without the necessity of maintaining any hand gripping action on the handles of the tool, said last named means comprising a reciprocable element movable in a direction parallel to the common axis of the members and cooperating with both movable members and having a hand grippable end.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,086,371 Tear July 6, 1937 2,408,693 Sidebotham Oct. 1, 1946 2,561,286 Montgomery July 17. 1951 2,601,547 Minock June 24, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 171,079 Austria Oct. 15, 1951 

